Slat for an article of furniture



1964 E. F. HAMILTON ETAL 3,117,775

SLAT FOR AN ARTICLE OF FURNITURE Filed July 26, 1961 INVENTORS.

E424 Ff/A/w/Jo/v AND gyfi'ownv ff M0025 W, aw i Arroexvzys Unite States Patent 3,117,775 Patented Jan. 14, 1954 ice 3,117,775 SLAT FOR AN ARTICLE GF FURNITURE Earl 1 Hamilton and Edwin K. Moore, both 'of Columbus, 1nd, assignors to Hamiiton Cosco, Inc., Columbus, 11141., a corporation of indiana Filed July 26, 1961, Ser. N 126,954 4 Claims. (Ci. 267-110) This invention relates to a cushion-supporting slat for an article of furniture, and has for its object the provision of a slat which can be easily manufactured from inexpensive sheet-metal, which can be easily mounted on a tubular frame of an article of furniture, which will support a cushion on said frame and enhance the resiliency of said cushion, and which will tend to prevent said cushion from becoming pinched in said frame structure.

In accordance with our invention, there is provided an elongated sheet-metal slat having fingers at each of its ends receivable in openings in the opposite sides of a tubular frame of an article of furniture for mounting said slat thereon. Said slat is provided with upstanding means adjacent one of its ends to engage a cushion supported thereon and hold said cushion in substantially spaced relation to the slat-frame interconnection to substantially reduce the tendency of the portion of said cushion adjacent said interconnection from becoming caught in said interconnection.

The accompanying drawing illustrates our invention.

In such drawing:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an erected sofa frame having a plurality of slats embodying our invention mounted thereon;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view of the sofa frame shown in FIG. 1, but with portions thereof broken away; and

FIG. 3 is a vertical section of the frame shown in FIG. 2, and showing in dotted lines a cushion disposed on said frame.

Our slat construction is adapted to be used on chairs, settees, sofas, and the like, employing tubular frames for supporting cushions on said frames. As illustrated in FIG. 1, it may be employed in a sofa having a seat frame 19 provided front and rear tubular stretches 11 and 12 rigidly interconnected at their ends as at 14. The seat frame 16 is supported at each of its ends and at a point intermediate its length on leg frames 16, and a back frame 1:3 may be mounted at the rear of said seat frame in any convenient manner.

Our slat construction may be used in combination with such a seat frame it to support one or more cushions r 1? on said frame. Each of our slats 20 comprises an elongated piece of sheet-metal having its end portions 21 bent downwardly to form a pair of fingers 22. To connect the slats 20 to the seat frame, the front and rear seat frame stretches 11 and 12 are provided at intervals along their inner faces with slots for the reception of the slat fingers 22. In assembling the frame structure, the fingers 22 are passed through the slots in the stretches 11 and 12 before said stretches are rigidly interconnected by the members 14; and, after said fingers 22 are in place in said front and rear stretches 11 and 12, the members 14 are then secured in operative position to hold said front and rear frame stretches together. As shown in FIG. 3, the distance between the fingers 22 at the opposite ends of each of the slats is approximately equal to the distance between the center lines of the front and rear stretches 11 and 12 so that the slats may move longitudinally of themselves with respect to the seat frame 16 with the fingers 22 preventing said slats from pulling out of the frame.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the intermediate portion 25 of the slat is offset downwardly below the hooked slat ends. Conveniently, said intermediate portion 25 is provided with an upwardly projecting, longitudinally extending bead 26. When a weight is applied to the slats, they move longitudinally of themselves flexing downwardly below the frame to thus enhance the resiliency of the cushions. The beads 26 increase the strength of the slats so that they may be made of a lighter gauge or lower temper steel while still retaining a high resilient strength.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the slat is provided with an upwardly projecting, transversely extending head 23 adjacent the finger 22 received in the front frame stretch 11. The head 28 limits the longitudinal sliding movement of the slat 20 with respect to the seat frame 10. It further serves to engage the lower face of the cushion 19 to hold said cushion away from the slat connection to the front frame member 11 so that the material forming said cushion will not become pinched between the slat 2t and the slot in the member 11 in which the finger 22 is received. In normal usage, a person sitting on a cushion 19 will apply a substantial weight to said cushion adjacent the front frame stretch 11 to thus force the lower portion of said cushion substantially downwardly below the frame stretch 11. However, the head 28 will hold this lower portion of the cushion 19 away from the slat-frame interconnection to prevent that lower portion of the cushion from becoming pinched between the slat 2t and the frame stretch 11 as said slat is moved relative to the frame It While our invention finds its primary usage in the seat frames of articles of furniture, it may, of course, also be used in association with back frames of articles of furniture where such back frames employ a pair of spaced tubular members in which the slats may be received.

We claim:

1. A cushion-supporting slat for use in an article of furniture having a frame provided with a pair of tubular stretches, said slat comprising an elongated strip of resilient sheet-metal having end portions bent to form hooked fingers at its ends receivable in aligned openings formed in said tubular stretches for mounting said slat on the frame, the distance between said fingers approximating the distance between the center lines of said pair of stretches whereby said slat is movable longitudinaily of itself in said frame, the intermediate portion of said slat being offset out of the plane of said end portions, and an oppositely offset projection on said slat adjacent one end thereof adapted to engage said frame for limiting longitudinal sliding movement of said slat relative to the frame and holding a cushion away from the adjacent slat-frame interconnection.

2. A cushion-supporting slat for use in an article of furniture having a frame provided with a pair of tubular stretches, said slat comprising an elongated strip of resilient sheet-metal having end portions bent to form hooked fingers at its ends receivable in aligned openings formed in said tubular stretches for mounting said slat on the frame, the distance between said fingers approximating the distance between the center lines of said pair of stretches whereby said slat is movable longitudinally of itself in said frame, the intermediate portion of said slat being offset out of the plane of said end portions, and an outwardly projecting, transversely extending bead formed on said slat adjacent one end thereof adapted to engage said frame for limiting longitudinal sliding movement of said slat relative to the frame and holding a cushion away from the adjacent slat-frame interconnection.

3. A cushion-supporting slat for use in an article of furniture having a frame provided with a pair of tubular stretches, said slat comprising an elongated strip of resilient sheet-metal having end portions bent to form depending fingers at its ends receivable in aligned openings formed in said tubular stretches for mounting said slat on the frame, the distance between said fingers approximating the distance between the center lines of said pair of stretches whereby said slat is movable lon itudinally of itself in said frame, the intermediate portion of said slat being offset out of the plane of said end portions and having a longitudinally extending bead formed thereon, and a transversely extending bead formed in said slat adjacent one end thereof adapted to engage said frame for limiting the longitudinal movement of said slat relative to the frame and holding a cushion away from the adjacent slat-frame interconnection.

4. In combination with an article of furniture having a generally horizontal seat frame provided with interconnected front and rear tubular stretches, a slat comprising an elongated strip of resilient sheet-metal having end portions bent to form downwardly hooked fingers at its ends receivable in aligned openings formed in said tubular stretches for mounting said slat on the seat frame, the distance between said fingers approximating the distance between the center lines of said pair of stretches whereby said slat is movable fore and aft relative to said seat frame, the intermediate portion of said slat being offset downwardly through the plane of said seat frame, a longitudinally extending bead formed in said intermediate stretch and projecting upwardly therefrom, and an upwardly projecting, transversely extending bead formed in said slat adjacent the end thereof connected to said front tubular frame stretch for limiting the movement of said slat relative the frame and holding a cushion away from the slat-front frame stretch interconnection.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 894,748 Scott July 28, 1908 2,125,987 Braun Aug. 9, 1938 2,817,390 Crites Dec. 24, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 450,390 Canada Aug. 10, 1948 

1. A CUSHION-SUPPORTING SLAT FOR USE IN AN ARTICLE OF FURNITURE HAVING A FRAME PROVIDED WITH A PAIR OF TUBULAR STRETCHES, SAID SLAT COMPRISING AN ELONGATED STRIP OF RESILIENT SHEET-METAL HAVING END PORTIONS BENT TO FORM HOOKED FINGERS AT ITS ENDS RECEIVABLE IN ALIGNED OPENINGS FORMED IN SAID TUBULAR STRETCHES FOR MOUNTING SAID SLAT ON THE FRAME, THE DISTANCE BETWEEN SAID FINGERS APPROXIMATING THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE CENTER LINES OF SAID PAIR OF STRETCHES WHEREBY SAID SLAT IS MOVABLE LONGITUDINALLY OF ITSELF IN SAID FRAME, THE INTERMEDIATE PORTION OF SAID SLAT BEING OFFSET OUT OF THE PLANE OF SAID END PORTIONS, AND AN OPPOSITELY OFFSET PROJECTION ON SAID SLAT ADJACENT ONE END THEREOF ADAPTED TO ENGAGE SAID FRAME FOR LIMITING LONGITUDINAL SLIDING MOVEMENT OF SAID SLAT RELATIVE TO THE FRAME AND HOLDING A CUSHION AWAY FROM THE ADJACENT SLAT-FRAME INTERCONNECTION. 